It's high time for some creative thinking about how to make our society more energy efficient, and Jie Han has come up with a few ideas. And while some of them might seem a little outlandish, there's no doubt the old ways aren't going to last for much longer.

JIE HAN
Gargoyle assistant editor
Posted Monday, March 17, 2008

WITH OIL PRICES hovering around $110 per barrel and the average gas prices up around $3.28 per gallon, people are feeling the pinch in their wallets.

I don't know the entire story, but from what I have read, it seems that OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) has significant influence on those prices, and the U.S. government doesn't seem to be doing a thing about it.

Maybe OPEC members haven't seen the rather large effect of their prices on our economy, maybe they like watching us suffer, or maybe there just aren't enough sources to satisfy demand.

But whatever the reason, a solution is way past overdue.

It's not very likely, though, that our government will intervene on behalf of its own common people.

Perhaps this is because our political leaders are fixated on other continents and the yearlong elections.

Perhaps the lobbyists representing various large corporations are more important to them than their own people — Congress only just passed a bill requiring all vehicles to meet a standard of 35 miles per gallon by 2020 this past December.

Perhaps there just isn't enough oil to go around.

A combination of all three, plus change?

Even though monopolies are technically illegal in the United States, there's little that the White House can do about monopolies outside of U.S. boundaries. Sure, the Bush administration can send in the tanks and explosives. But five years after the Iraq invasion, is taking over more oil-producing countries by force: a) ethical or b) the solution?

Well, I'm not sure that the moral part would be too much of an obstacle, given the government's stance on the waterboarding issue. But even if the U.S. military were able to seize most of OPEC's oil refineries, there probably would be a lot of unhappy people in those countries and elsewhere. And we don't need more people around the world angry with us.

So, what can be done?

People have been carpooling, biking, or using public transportation ever since oil prices started rising. However, even that isn't enough to save much money, given that oil companies would like to decrease production and raise prices when demand isn't going strong, forcing us into an even tighter corner.

Then again, I believe that any good, environmentally friendly alternative solution has the potential to be the next iPod or "Pirates of the Caribbean" — lucrative, promising, yet beneficial.

Biking is probably one of the cheaper alternatives: You depend on yourself (or maybe a friend) to provide the energy. So as long as food prices aren't high, distances aren't long, you're a good cyclist, and the weather is nice, it's a good solution.

But what if you don't fit within those criteria? You could try getting a motorcycle or moped, which aren't exactly popular on the roads (if you could even get a moped around here). They'd slice off a good portion of your gas bill since you aren't carting several tons of metal and plastic every time you decide to fetch a gallon of milk or a loaf of bread.

Remember a time when Wal-Mart wasn't around and small shops proliferated? Why not return to that time? I mean, the choice and quality of stuff usually isn't as good with supermarkets as with individual boutiques. With more shops, there would be more diversity in products, as well as more jobs for our sagging economy.

These shops might charge more, but they can't charge too much or they'd lose business. So instead of having to buy a week's worth of groceries on the weekends, you could buy what you need every couple days. And there'd be fewer plastic bags, too — it's easier to bike around with a sturdy bag instead of 20 layers of thin plastic. Too much time? Use the Internet and preorder stuff! Then, like a drive-thru fast-food joint, you'd be ready to go in no time!

Of course, if fuel prices for mopeds go up, we can use alternative energy sources, like biofuels.

I don't know the logistics or how efficient it is, but I heard of a novel idea that tries to harness the power of people walking on the sidewalk. By installing a special sidewalk, the researchers could convert people's steps into electricity. Think of all the possibilities!

Since people are so partial to gyms and working out, you could have people exercise on equipment linked to a central battery, effectively turning them into energy generators. This could power the building itself; in return, people could have reduced membership prices — or it could be wiped out altogether.

If people wanted to make a profit, they could hire people to run/exercise and fuel people's mopeds, batteries, etc., in addition to wind- and solar-farming. This would help out people "in between jobs" or the poor of the society, since the workers need to be fed/housed/in good condition to generate energy — a professional occupation like major sports teams.

This would potentially reduce the unemployment percentage, which would stimulate the economy better than a one-time check, and/or reduce the obesity "epidemic," keeping more people healthy and fit.

One problem would be the human rights issue, how to tell whether or not someone was being abused or not. To combat that, the government can regulate and send trustworthy inspectors to randomly pop into a station and examine the quality of the equipment, conditions, etc.

Of course, all of this depends on the people. Who will be the pioneers in leading the energy efficiency movement?

Would people be willing to do this?

Note: An earlier version of this column appeared as an entry in the Gargoyle staff blog.